State names bridge in honor of fallen soldier

Just days before Veterans Day and with the help of a color guard and a bugler playing "Taps," friends, family, and community members gathered to remember a local man for his service to our country with a permanent memorial to his ultimate sacrifice.

MOUNTAIN CITY, Tenn. -

Just days before Veterans Day and with the help of a color guard and a bugler playing "Taps," friends, family, and community members gathered to remember a local man for his service to our country with a permanent memorial to his ultimate sacrifice.

Just past the four-year anniversary of the 2009 Fort Hood massacre that left twelve U.S. service members dead, one family and their solider son were honored for his actions that day. "He would disagree if he were here. But Fred is a hero. And he deserves this," said Specialist Fred Greene's mother Karen Nourse.

The Army said Spc. Greene charged the convicted shooter Major Nidal Hasan with nothing more than an ink pen. Nourse said she's proud of her late son's actions. "This is a great honor," said Nourse. "It's awesome that [Tennessee is] doing this. Fred was definitely deserving. He was an honorable person. And he died saving lives."

Thanks to the efforts State Representative Timothy Hill, everyone who drives over Goose Greek on State Route 67 in Mountain City will see Greene's name, and the Spc. Frederick Greene Memorial Bridge. "It's an honor of mine to play just a small part to be able to make a permanent memorial for Specialist Greene," said Rep. Hill

It's a memorial that keeps Greene's memory forever alive in the place he called home. "That sign, that bridge keeps him a part of this community and that is extremely important to us," said Nourse.

The honor given to her son source of pride for Nourse, but won't replace her boy. "I do not have my son. That's not going to change. And my heart is going to be broken forever," she said.